For me it’s anything based on those Coltrane changes like countdown or Giant Steps. I find I can play over it if I’m reading it but I forget the changes really easily. If I play it with anyone in a gig or jam setting, it always ends up a car crash on my part How about you?

A question for you today. As jazz violinists, when you practice, do you mainly work on “how” you execute your notes or “what” notes you play?

People don't talk enough about muscle memory when talking about jazz, it's often brushed over and many teachers and musicians want to make you think that complicated jazz language is basically learned through some sort of magic. It's why I started creating exercises for jazz violinists back in 2019. I put these exercises together not to give you licks over specific chords, but to help you understand how the major scale works. To give you language based patterns for your fingers to work around and to try and get chromatic and chordal ideas into your subconscious and muscle memory. To help you start hearing and understanding the connections between the chords that come from the major scale, without worrying about theory too much. I work on them every week in Practise Club with my Premium and VIP members. (You can upgrade here) I also have them laid out nicely in my newsest course "Mastering Chromaticism" in the classroom. You can always book in a short chat with me HERE about how I might be able to help you progress

Saturday 13th June, 4pm UK time I'm running a free beginner session this month, open to everyone in the community including free members. We'll be working on Lady Be Good, looking at how to approach the harmony and getting some simple lines under your fingers. No jazz experience needed, just bring your violin. Register HERE See you there!

If you REALLY know the chord changes to a tune you should be able to arpeggiate over them in any key. I set iReal Pro to ”numbered notation” and tried it in all 12 keys. I found I could memorize and play the melody, and even memorize the guide tones I wanted to emphasize (in green in chart below)… but I really struggled to arpeggiate in certain finger positions. Here I am struggling to arpeggiate starting on the guide tones for On The Sunny Side of the Street in key of B and E; watch the fingering I chose carefully…. my intonation is simply awful in these positions.